The Minimalists Soupe Au Pistou Food

SOUPE AU PISTOU (FRENCH SUMMER VEGETABLE SOUP)

Steps:

• Soaking the Navy Beans (skip if using canned beans): Rinse and sort the beans. Soak the beans overnight covered in cold water. The next morning, drain the beans, rinse, and use as directed below.
• Quick-Soak Method: Rinse and sort the beans. Transfer to a saucepan and cover with 2 inches (5 cm) water. Bring to a boil, and keep boiling for 1 minute. Turn the heat off, cover the saucepan, and let rest for 1 hour. Drain the beans, rinse, and use as directed below.
• Cooking the Navy Beans: Transfer the soaked beans in a large saucepan. Add the bay leaves and add enough water to cover the beans with about 2 inches (5 cm) of water.
• Bring to a boil over high heat, then lower the heat and simmer gently for 15 minutes. Remove the saucepan from the heat and set aside while you prepare the soup.
• Make the Soupe au Pistou: In a Dutch oven or large stockpot, heat the olive oil. Add the onions or leeks and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent.
• Add the thyme, diced carrots, zucchini, green beans, garlic, and salt. Season with pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes, or until the vegetables start to soften. Add the vegetable stock and stir to combine. If using dried beans, add the cooked beans and their liquid. If using canned beans, add the drained and rinsed beans now. Next, add the peas and pasta or your choice. Bring the soup to a boil, then simmer for about 5 minutes, or until the pasta is cooked.
• Make the Pistou: In a food processor, pulse the garlic with a generous pinch of salt until it is finely chopped. Add the basil, tomato, and parmesan cheese, and pulse again until the mixture is relatively smooth. Add the olive oil to blend everything together and emulsify the pistou. Taste, and season with more salt if desired.
• SERVING: Ladle hot soup into bowls and add a generous spoonful of pistou to each serving. Keep extra pistou within reach because you'll likely want to add more to the soup as you go.
• MAKE IT DAIRY-FREE & VEGAN: Make sure to use vegetable stock and replace the parmesan cheese with nutritional yeast, or omit it completely.
• MAKE IT GLUTEN-FREE: Make sure to use a gluten-free variety of short pasta.

FRENCH SOUPE AU PISTOU

Steps:

• In a heavy pot (about 8-quart size), combine green beans, onions, potatoes, tomatoes and stock.
• Bring to a boil, then simmer until beans and potatoes are crisp tender.
• Add the cooked white beans with their cooking water (or liquid from cans) and vermicelli, and simmer until the vermicelli is just tender.
• Combine the basil, cheese, oil and garlic in a blender or processor, and puree.
• Stir this paste into the soup, bit by bit.
• Adjust seasoning if necessary.
• After the sauce has been added, the soup may be warmed, but not boiled.
• Serve with hot or toasted slices of French bread.
• To freeze: Prepare soup up to the point of adding pesto. Cool. Place in a rigid freezer container. Seal. Place pesto in a freezer bag. Seal. Attach to the top of the freezer container with tape. Label and freeze.
• To serve: Thaw in fridge. Reheat soup on stovetop until boiling. Turn down heat and add pesto to taste. Enjoy.
• For Vegetarian use vegetable broth and a vegetarian parmesan cheese.

THE MINIMALIST'S SOUPE AU PISTOU

Steps:

• Put beans, onion, carrots, celery and potatoes in a large saucepan with water to cover by at least 2 inches. Bring to a boil and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 30 to 60 minutes (dried beans will take longer to cook than fresh), adding a little more water if necessary. When beans are just about tender, add zucchini and tomatoes and simmer for another 20 minutes or so.
• Meanwhile, combine garlic, basil and olive oil in a food processor (or a mortar and pestle) until pasty; use a little more oil if necessary. Season with salt and pepper.
• About 10 minutes before serving, add pasta to soup and cook until tender but not mushy; season again. Serve soup, passing pistou and Parmesan at the table.

PISTOU SOUP

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large pan and sweat the onion, carrots, celery, fennel, turnip, celeriac and parsnip for 5-10 mins. Pour over 1.6 litres of boiling water, season and simmer for 10-15 mins, until the vegetables are tender. At the last moment add the peas and the beans and cook for a further 1 min. Taste and season with salt and pepper as necessary.
• Meanwhile, make the pesto sauce. Blanch the basil leaves in boiling water for 5 secs, then remove and cool under cold running water. Pat dry and purée all the ingredients in a liquidiser. Taste and season, then reserve. Keep in the fridge until required. When ready to serve, pour the soup into a large, warmed tureen, top with some of the pesto sauce and serve to your guests. Place Parmesan and croûtons on the table so guests may help themselves.

SOUPE AU PISTOU

Steps:

• Put onion, carrots, celery and potatoes in a large saucepan with broth to cover by at least 2 inches. Bring to a boil and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes, adding a little more water if necessary.
• When vegetables are just about tender, add beans, zucchini and tomatoes and simmer for another 20 minutes or so.
• Meanwhile, combine garlic, basil, olive oil and tomato or tomato paste in a blender or food processor and process until pasty. Season with salt and pepper.
• About 10 minutes before the vegetables are done, add pasta to soup and cook until tender but not mushy; season again. Serve soup and pass pistou and parmesan at the table.

SOUPE AU PISTOU

Steps:

• Put the beans, potatoes and tomatoes into the boiling water.
• Season with salt and pepper and boil over a hot fire.
• When the vegetables are almost cooked, add the vermicelli and finish cooking gently.
• Make the aillade: In a blender, blend the garlic, basil and grilled tomato until thoroughly smooth.
• Add 3 tablespoonfuls of the liquid from the pistou (soup).
• Pour the pistou into a tureen, stir in the aillade and top with some grated Gruyere (Swiss) cheese.